Electric solid body guitars known in the prior art produce sound by using one or more electric coils to pick up the vibration of the strings (which must be of a magnetic material, normally steel) in a magnetic field. The electrical output of the coils is then amplified and the amplified signal is then reproduced by means of a loud speaker. Electric guitars produce relatively little direct sound energy themselves, and are totally reliant on amplification if they are to be heard by other than the player.
FIG. 1 shows electric solid body guitar 10 commonly found in the prior art consisting of solid body 12 having neck 20 extending therefrom and ending in head stock 16 which contains a plurality of tuning pegs 18 disposed within head stock 16. Mounted to body 12, opposite neck 20, is tailpiece 14 and bridge 28. Strings 22 are then coupled to body 12 by tailpiece 14 and stretched in parallel with one another over bridge 28, across body 12, over neck 20 and then ending with each string 22 being coupled to an independent tuning peg 18. Strings 22 are then tuned by tightening each string appropriately by winding the strings 22 around the tuning pegs. Bridge 28 allows strings 22 to be adjusted such that their height above neck 20 is at a position favorable to an individual playing guitar 10. Magnetic coil pickups 24 and 26 are mounted in solid body 12 and positioned beneath strings 22 such that the electric coils of pickups 24 and 26 sense the vibration of the strings in a magnetic field created by the pickups. The electrical output of the coils is coupled to output connector 8 disposed within solid body 12 allowing guitar 10 to be electrically connected to an external amplifier. The amplified signal is then reproduced by means of a loud speaker, not shown.
Solid, rigid body instruments are known to be less prone to feedback, possess better string sustain and provide a more even frequency response as compared to acoustic instruments although acoustic instruments are known to have superior tonal quality due to their sound producing bodies. FIG. 2 depicts acoustic guitar 40 as found in the prior art which is comprised of top 42 having side walls and a bottom, not shown, to create a sound box or cavity capable of reproducing and amplifying the vibrations of strings 22. Top 42 includes aperture 46 positioned beneath strings 22 which adds to the sound producing qualities of the sound box. As in FIG. 1, acoustic guitar 40 includes tailpiece 14 and bridge 28 having strings 22 coupled to top 42 by tailpiece 14. Extending from top 42, opposite tailpiece 14 and bridge 28, neck 20 extends ending in a head stock having tuning pegs as described for FIG. 1, although not shown. Strings 22 again are stretched over bridge 28 and between tailpiece 14 and the head stock. To provide amplification necessary for acoustic guitar 40 to be heard by large groups of people, such as when an acoustic guitar is played in a night club or stadium, transducer 44 is used. FIG. 2 demonstrates one method of amplification known in the prior art, that being to couple an electrical pickup to bridge 28 beneath strings 22. Transducer 44 may include a piezoelectric crystal which generates an electrical signal representative of the vibrations picked up through bridge 28 caused by strings 22.
FIG. 3 depicts an additional method known in the prior art for coupling an electrical transducer to an acoustic guitar for amplification purposes. Backside 36 of top 42 of an acoustic guitar is shown in FIG. 3 and includes aperture 46 and a plurality of support bars 50. Side view 38 of top 42 is also shown. Piezoelectric transducer 52 is coupled to the back 36 of top 42 adjacent aperture 46 in order to sense the vibration of the entire musical instrument and recreate a tone similar to the original sound produced by the strings.
There have also been numerous attempts to capture the advantages found in acoustic instruments for use with rigid solid body electric instruments which almost exclusively encompass variations on the bridge design of the guitar. Most prior art bridge designs consist of alternate arrangements of the instruments bridge with piezoelectric transducers, either individually or in groups. FIG. 4 shows such an arrangement which comprises top 60 of a guitar with bridge 72 mounted to the upper side of top 60. Bridge 72 includes a slot in which saddle 70 is maintained which will eventually have strings 68 stretched over it. Disposed between bridge 72 and saddle 70 is transducer 62 which is comprised of a piezoelectric transducer having output lead 64 disposed through hole 66 within bridge 72 and top 60 which couples transducer 62 to external amplification equipment. Transducer 62 senses and generates an electrical signal representative of the vibrations from string 68 transmitted through saddle 70, bridge 72 and top 60. By incorporating piezoelectric transducers or other small transducers within the bridge or under the string saddles of the bridge the configurations of the prior art simulate the resonance and tonal qualities present in acoustic instruments only after the string vibrations have transferred from a string through a metal saddle bridge to the electrical transducer. Due to attenuation and distortion induced into the strings vibration by the bridge and its various components, actual wood tones and resonance are not captured by the electrical transducer thereby compromising the tonal qualities of the solid body stringed instrument.
Therefore, in light of the foregoing deficiencies in the prior art, Applicant's invention is herein presented.